When the Congregation is a Lemon...

by

John D. McArthur, Jr.

What do you do when your congregation refuses to do what it takes to become "User-Friendly" or "Seeker Sensitive"? What happens when the local church stubbornly resists entering the 90's style of worship which includes the use of choruses, overheads, worship bands, etc.? What is your reaction when the body of believers ignore all the best material guaranteed to make the church grow available today?

When the congregation is, according to the standards set up by today's experts, a lemon, we usually gripe, fuss, complain and ultimately leave that church. There is no doubt, working with a congregation that is not on the cutting edge or growing is frustrating, depressing and discouraging. And picking up a copy of the latest method of evangelism or hearing a dynamic speaker explain how a church can grow from 100 to 1,000 in six months just to have the idea nixed by the church board (or worse, received coldly and in turn doomed to fail by the congregation) only fans the flames of resentment for the worker and encourages the minister to find another church or another line of work.

The problem is we have set standards for churches that are not standards God has established.